Last Sunday, I took a day trip to Prescott, Arizona and Watson Lake with my son and his wife. First, we got coffees and walked around a bit in downtown Prescott. As of 2006, the population of Prescott is about 41,500. If I don’t move to Fargo, ND, Prescott might have one more resident as I very much like this town. It’s much smaller than Phoenix, older and slower paced AND about ten degrees cooler. Not that 10 degrees is very much but it seems even cooler because of the trees. This is a view of the county courthouse in the center of town.

Walking along Whiskey Row and looking at all the bars and shops, on the corner is The Hotel St. Michael. It was opened in 1901 and stands on the sight where the Hotel Burke used to be which burned in 1900 when part of downtown Prescott was destroyed by fire. On a commemorative plaque on the building I find that it was “Built of brick and stone, and is decorated with stone faces or “gargoyles” which allegedly represent crude images of local politicians.” 😆 I also find out that many distinguished visitors have graced the rooms of Hotel St. Michael, including President Theodore Roosevelt, John L. Sullivan, Jake Kilrain (don’t know who he is), Tom Mix (famous cowboy actor), Zane Grey (famous writer) and our very own Senator Barry Goldwater.

A boutique window display in one of the shops in the hotel.

One of the many saloons along Whiskey Row.

After about an hour, we drove the short distance outside of the city and arrived at Watson Lake. I thought Watson Lake was a naturally formed lake and it is not. From Wikipedia: “Watson Lake is one of two reservoirs at the Granite Dells, outside of Prescott, Arizona that was formed in the early 1900s when the Chino Valley Irrigation District built a dam on Granite Creek. The City of Prescott bought the reservoir and surrounding land in 1997 to preserve it as recreational land. Watson Lake was used in scenes for the film Billy Jack.”

We had a nice picnic under a tree and enjoyed watching the kaykers in the distance and some dogs playing in the water nearby. My son took a few photos of me and his wife but I have not received them yet. The photos here are mine taken with my still trusty Pentax.

This last photo is a different angle from the photos in my previous post about Granite Dells. I was astonished at how far out those men had to jump. Along the shore, I could see boulders underneath the water all around me, however, the water at the base of the cliff they were jumping from looked dark and I could see no boulders….but I still wouldn't have jumped. It looks as if the water level is about the same (or a little higher) this day as it was 20 yrs ago but you can see it has fluctuated.

That boulder on top looks like a giant skull.

More photos of the day trip here.